AA/ Alioune Ndiaye
Besides the Africa of wars, famine and other problems, there is the Africa of solutions; the one who would like her relationships with her partners to be reinvented.
This was indicated by Senegalese President Macky Sall, Chairman of the AU, during his speech at the general debate of the 77th session of the United Nations opened Tuesday in New York.
“I came to say that we do not ignore Africa’s problems, which must be pacified and stabilized. But I also came to say that we also have solutions in Africa”, insisted the Senegalese President.
He illustrated his argument by citing the 30 million km2, the human resources, the more than 60% of the world’s arable land available to the continent as well as the mineral, forest, water and energy wealth within it.
This Africa mentioned by Sall cannot prosper, according to him, without a positive development in its relations with its partners.
“Yes, we have the Africa of solutions (…) This Africa of solutions wishes to engage with all its partners in reinvented relations”, noted the President of the AU.
“I have come to say that Africa has borne enough of the burden of history; that it does not want to be the home of a new cold war, but rather a pole of stability and opportunities open to all its partners, on a mutually beneficial basis,” Sall said, calling himself the messenger “of ‘a continent determined to work with all its partners, in a relational ethic of trusting dialogue and mutual respect’.
In this quest for a new status in the concert of nations, Sall recalled the request to grant a seat to the AU within the G20; this, he said, so that Africa can, at last, be represented where decisions are taken which involve one billion four hundred million Africans.
President Sall also referred to the terrorism that is gaining ground on the continent, calling on the Security Council “in the first instance” to ensure that threats to peace and security in Africa benefit from the same treatment as in other areas of the world.
“The African Union calls, once again, for the lifting of foreign sanctions against Zimbabwe. These severe measures continue to fuel a feeling of injustice against an entire people, and to aggravate their suffering in these times of deep crisis,” the President further insisted on matters affecting the continent.
Sall also made a plea for the continent on climate adaptation and drew attention to the constraints imposed on the continent in the context of economic and financial governance.
Internationally, the AU Chair called for the de-escalation and cessation of hostilities in Ukraine, for a negotiated solution to avoid the catastrophic risk of a potentially global conflict. He also reiterated the right of the Palestinian people to a viable state, coexisting peacefully with the State of Israel.
Opened on Tuesday, the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly which focuses on the theme “A turning point: transformative solutions to intricate challenges” will continue until September 26.
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